Great New IC Book Released – The Proactive Patient: Managing IC/BPS and Related Conditions by Gaye and Andrew Sandler

Gaye & Andrew Sandler have released their first new book in a decade for men, women & children struggling with IC and its many related conditions. What sets this husband and wife team apart from so many other authors who have written about interstitial cystitis is their focus on patient comfort. In The Proactive Patient: Managing Interstitial Cystitis/ Bladder Pain Syndrome and the Related Conditions, they’ve created a comprehensive resource guide that will help patients, young and old, as they explore treatments, learn to manage their IC symptoms, reduce pain and enjoy intimacy again.

Every chapter provides the reader (and their family members) with tips and strategies to ease discomfort, control flares and better manage their symptoms. The discussion of traditional therapies is balanced with alternative and complementary therapies for those patients who lack health insurance and/or prefer a more natural approach to treatment. If you, like many others, have faced hostile or unknowledgeable medical care providers, they provide tips on how to find and work with seasoned and compassionate pelvic pain experts.

Gaye was the first author to explore the relationship between IC and its many related conditions and expands that discussion dramatically in this new book, providing information and self-help tips for patients struggling with IBS, constipation, pelvic floor dysfunction, pudendal neuralgia, fibromyalgia, TMJ, hypothyroidism and others.

I particularly appreciated the chapter “Reclaiming Comfort in Your Body,” which explores exercise ideas, stretching tips and yoga poses that can help ease discomfort, lessen muscle tension and regain strength in a pelvic floor compromised by pain, particularly for patients who continue work and/or who struggle with sitting.

In recent years, we’ve learned that chemical sensitivity and environmental illness can play a significant role in the exacerbation of bladder symptoms and general health. This book explores chemical sensitivity and provides a plethora of ideas to help patients reduce toxic exposure and build a toxic-free home, clearly wisdom gained from their own experience with multiple chemical sensitivity. If you plan on remodeling or building a home in the near future, you’ll find their suggestions extremely helpful!

Their discussion of hormones, pregnancy, midlife and sexuality is excellent. They review, in-depth, the struggles that women face as they age. If you’re not sure if hormone replacement therapy is right for you, they provide an excellent discussion of the pros and cons of various hormone treatments. They explore the challenge of intimacy with practical tips on how to reduce discomfort associated with intercourse. Patients exploring pregnancy will find the information on point, even down to the discussion of pros and cons of various delivery methods.

It is fitting that the book ends with a chapter written by Andrew, titled “Living with IC/BPS: A Partner’s Perspective,” who, with brutal honesty, shares his experience as spouse to an IC patient. He shows how a healthy relationship and family can not only survive but also thrive by creating a foundation of honesty and communication. Gaye and Andrew’s desire to help others makes them a treasure of the IC movement. Thank you for, yet again, writing a book that will help patients regain their confidence, rebuild their strength, build their knowledge and, most importantly, ease their suffering. – Jill Osborne, ICN President & Founder

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How To Buy The Book

The book is now available through the ICN Shop! It’s in stock and ready to ship today. ICN Angel Subscribers will receive 15% off their purchase! BUY IT NOW!

Gaye Grissom Sandler is an author and educator living in Nashville. Gaye holds a B.A. in Humanities from New College of California and completed one of the first alternative programs for holistic educators at Holistic Life University in San Francisco. After training with movement pioneer, Judith Aston, and becoming a practitioner of muscle and movement re-education, she worked for many years in physical therapy and wellness clinics. While living in Boston, Gaye and her husband, Andrew, facilitated an IC support group at the Newton-Wellesley Hospital and produced an exercise video for IC patients. They have also given separate workshops and presentations at ICA National Meetings and had a column on the IC Network, called LifeStyles. In 2000, Gaye and Andrew published Patient to Patient: Managing Interstitial Cystitis and Overlapping Conditions. Other publications include Stretch into a Better Shape: Stretching and Strengthening for Interstitial Cystitis and Fibromyalgia Patients, which was co-authored with physical therapist, Merrilee Kullman, and The Interstitial Cystitis Guide for Partners, which Gaye and Andrew co-authored with former IC support group leader Molly Hanna Glidden and her husband William Glidden.

Andrew Sandler is the Executive Director of Park Manor and Chief Executive Officer of Abe’s Garden, a national model of residential living and day care programs for those affected by Alzheimer’s and dementia. Andrew holds three graduate degrees, including a Masters of Health Administration from Tulane University, a Ph.D. in Special Education from the University of New Orleans, and a Masters of Arts in Clinical Psychology from Farleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, New Jersey. He received his undergraduate degree in Psychology from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. He has written numerous journal articles that have appeared in publications such as Advances in Special Education, the Journal of Behavioral Education, The Urban Review, and the American Journal of Occupational Therapy. His article “American Tragedy: New Orleans Under Water” was published in Callaloo in 2007. Andrew has served as a board member of the Gulf States Association of Homes and Services for the Aging and as the President of the Alzheimer’s Association New Orleans Regional Advisory Committee.

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My Google Profile+ Jill Heidi Osborne is the president and founder of the Interstitial Cystitis Network, a health education company dedicated to interstitial cystitis, bladder pain syndrome and other pelvic pain disorders.
As the editor and lead author of the ICN and the IC Optimist magazine, Jill is proud of the academic recognition that her website has achieved. The University of London rated the ICN as the top IC website for accuracy, credibility, readability and quality. (Int Urogynecol J - April 2013). Harvard Medical School rated both Medscape and the ICN as the top two websites dedicated to IC. (Urology - Sept 11). Jill currently serves on the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Panel (US Army) where she collaborates with researchers to evaluate new IC research studies for possible funding. Jill has conducted and/or collaborates on a variety of IC research studies on new therapeutics, pain care, sexuality, the use of medical marijuana, menopause and the cost of treatments, shining a light on issues that influence patient quality of life.
An IC support group leader and national spokesperson for the past 20 years, she has represented the IC community on radio, TV shows, at medical conferences. She has written hundreds of articles on IC and its related conditions.
With a Bachelors Degree in Pharmacology and a Masters in Psychology, Jill was named Presidential Management Intern (aka Fellowship) while in graduate school. (She was unable to earn her PhD due to the onset of her IC.) She spends the majority of her time providing WELLNESS COACHING for patients in need and developing new, internet based educational and support tools for IC patients, including the “Living with IC” video series currently on YouTube and the ICN Food List smartphone app! Jill was diagnosed with IC at the age of 32 but first showed symptoms at the age of 12.

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The ICN is a health education company dedicated to IC and chronic pelvic pain syndrome. Rated the top patient website dedicated to IC in peer reviewed studies by Harvard (2011) and the Univ. of London (2013), our goal is to empower, educate and encourage patients and providers!